A core teaching · reflective in mood · a little context helps
“Pride turns abundance into delusion and makes more wanting feel justified.”
We are rich, surrounded by many people. Who is equal to us? We will sacrifice, give, and enjoy. Deluded by ignorance, they think this way.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Tap a word to focus on it.
Read literallyrich · well-born, surrounded by family and followers · I am · who · other · is · equal · to me · I will sacrifice · I will give · I will rejoice · thus · deluded by ignorance
Arrogance makes a person feel rich, superior, and endlessly secure. That delusion then turns even sacrifice and giving into excuses for more enjoyment.
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga" (The Divine and Demoniac Natures).
Verse 15 sits in Chapter 16 of the Bhagavad Gita — Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga, "The Divine and Demoniac Natures". The chapter has 24 verses in total.
At a lavish wedding, a family makes sure everyone hears the size of their donation to the temple. Krishna quotes that mind: we are rich, who is equal to us, we will give and enjoy.
Did you like this verse?
'Who is equal to us?' the deluded ask, planning sacrifices and gifts that serve their own pride.
What this verse means
Arrogance makes a person feel rich, superior, and endlessly secure. That delusion then turns even sacrifice and giving into excuses for more enjoyment.
Context & commentary
Krishna is exposing the mindset of the asuric person after Arjuna’s crisis on Kurukshetra. The deluded mind says, “I have wealth, people, and status; no one equals me.” That false certainty feeds greed, vanity, and self-indulgence.
What it looks like today
At a lavish wedding, a family makes sure everyone hears the size of their donation to the temple. Krishna quotes that mind: we are rich, who is equal to us, we will give and enjoy.
“You can catch pride at its root before it turns into greed, display, and self-deception.”
Explore related themes: ahankara (10 verses)